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This chapter describes basic interface configuration for the ML-Series card to help you get your ML-Series card up and running. Advanced packet-over-SONET/SDH (POS) interface configuration is covered in Configuring POS. For more information about the Cisco IOS commands used in this chapter, refer to the Cisco IOS Command Reference publication.

General Interface Guidelines

The main function of the ML-Series card is to relay packets from one data link to another. Consequently, you must configure the characteristics of the interfaces that receive and send packets. Interface characteristics include, but are not limited to, IP address, address of the port, data encapsulation method, and media type.

Many features are enabled on a per-interface basis. Interface configuration mode contains commands that modify the interface operation (for example, of an Ethernet port). When you enter the interface command, you must specify the interface type and number.

The following general guidelines apply to all physical and virtual interface configuration processes:

All interfaces have a name that is composed of an interface type (word) and a Port ID (number). For example, FastEthernet 2.

Configure each interface with a bridge-group or IP address and IP subnet mask.

VLANs are supported through the use of subinterfaces. The subinterface is a logical interface configured separately from the associated physical interface.

Each physical interface, including the internal POS interfaces, has an assigned MAC address.

MAC Addresses

Every port or device that connects to an Ethernet network needs a MAC address. Other devices in the network use MAC addresses to locate specific ports in the network and to create and update routing tables and data structures.

To find MAC addresses for a device, use the show interfaces command, as follows:

Router# sh interfaces fastEthernet 0

FastEthernet0 is up, line protocol is up

Hardware is epif_port, address is 0005.9a39.6634 (bia 0005.9a39.6634)

MTU 1500 bytes, BW 100000 Kbit, DLY 100 usec,

reliability 255/255, txload 1/255, rxload 1/255

Encapsulation ARPA, loopback not set

Keepalive set (10 sec)

Full-duplex, Auto Speed, 100BaseTX

ARP type: ARPA, ARP Timeout 04:00:00

Last input 00:00:01, output 00:00:18, output hang never

Last clearing of "show interface" counters never

Input queue: 0/75/0/0 (size/max/drops/flushes); Total output drops: 0

Queueing strategy: fifo

Output queue :0/40 (size/max)

5 minute input rate 0 bits/sec, 0 packets/sec

5 minute output rate 0 bits/sec, 0 packets/sec

11 packets input, 704 bytes

Received 0 broadcasts, 0 runts, 0 giants, 0 throttles

0 input errors, 0 CRC, 0 frame, 0 overrun, 0 ignored

0 watchdog, 11 multicast

0 input packets with dribble condition detected

3 packets output, 1056 bytes, 0 underruns

0 output errors, 0 collisions, 0 interface resets

0 babbles, 0 late collision, 0 deferred

0 lost carrier, 0 no carrier

0 output buffer failures, 0 output buffers swapped out

Interface Port ID

The interface port ID designates the physical location of the interface within the ML-Series card. It is the name that you use to identify the interface that you are configuring. The system software uses interface port IDs to control activity within the ML-Series card and to display status information. Interface port IDs are not used by other devices in the network; they are specific to the individual ML-Series card and its internal components and software.

The ML100T-12 port IDs for the twelve Fast Ethernet interfaces are Fast Ethernet 0 through 11. The ML100X-8 port IDs for the eight Fast Ethernet interfaces are Fast Ethernet 0 through 7. The ML1000-2 port IDs for the two Gigabit Ethernet interfaces are Gigabit Ethernet 0 and 1. Both ML-Series cards feature two POS ports, and the ML-Series card port IDs for the two POS interfaces are POS 0 and POS 1. You can use user-defined abbreviations such as f0 to configure the Fast Ethernet interfaces, gi0 or gi1 to configure the two Gigabit Ethernet interfaces, and POS0 and POS1 to configure the two POS ports.

You can use Cisco IOS show commands to display information about any or all the interfaces of the ML-Series card.

Caution! Do not use the abbreviations g0 or g1 for Gigabit Ethernet user-defined abbreviations. This creates an unsupported group asynchronous interface.

Basic Interface Configuration

The following general configuration instructions apply to all interfaces. Before you configure interfaces, develop a plan for a bridge or routed network.

The commands that you enter define the protocols and applications that will run on the interface. The ML-Series card collects and applies commands to the interface command until you enter another interface command or a command that is not an interface configuration command. You can also enter end to return to privileged EXEC mode.

Check the status of the configured interface by entering the EXEC show interface command.

Sets the IP address and IP subnet mask to be assigned to the interface.

or

Assigns a network interface to a bridge group.

3

Router(config-if)#[no] speed {10 | 100 | auto}

Configures the transmission speed for 10 or 100 Mbps. If you set the speed or duplex for auto, you enable autonegotiation on the system. In this case, the ML-Series card matches the speed and duplex mode of the partner node.

4

Router(config-if)#[no] duplex {full | half | auto}

Sets full duplex, half duplex, or autonegotiate mode.

5

Router(config-if)# flowcontrol send {on | off | desired}

(Optional) Sets the send flow control value for an interface. Flow control works only with port-level policing. ML-Series card Fast Ethernet port flow control is IEEE 802.3x compliant.

Note: Since Fast Ethernet ports support only symmetric flow control the flowcontrol send command controls both the receive and send flow control operations.

Configuring the Fast Ethernet Interfaces for the ML100X-8

The ML100X-8 supports 100BASE-FX full-duplex data transmission. You cannot configure autonegotiation or speed on its Fast Ethernet interfaces. To configure the IP address or bridge-group number, or flow control on a Fast Ethernet interface, perform the following procedure, beginning in global configuration mode:

Configuring Gigabit Ethernet Remote Failure Indication (RFI)

Remote Failure Indication (RFI) is part of the IEEE 802.3z standard and is sent to exchange failure information as part of link negotiation. This feature improves communication between non-Cisco equipment and the ML1000-2. RFI is not on by default but can be turned on by the user. Disabling RFI is sometimes necessary when a non-Cisco piece of equipment does not support the IEEE 802.3z standard implementation of RFI.

RFI on the ML-Series card supports bidirectional RFI. When there is a a local fault on the ML-Series card, the ML-Series card will raise a local CARLOSS alarm and send its link partner an RFI. If an ML-Series card receives an RFI from its link partner, it raises the AUTONEG-RFI alarm and shuts down the Gigabit Ethernet port.

To enable RFI on a Gigabit Ethernet interface, perform the following procedure, beginning in global configuration mode:

After RFI is configured, you can verify that RFI is enabled by using the global command show running configuration. Example 4-4 shows the output from this command, and the "rfi auto" line under each of the Gigabit Ethernet port's output signifies RFI is enabled on these ports.

Example 4-5 shows the full output from this command on a near-end ML-Series card when no faults are detected at the near-end or far-end. The Remote Fault Indication is 00 or no error, and the Local Fault Indication is 00 or no error.

Example 4-6 shows the partial output from this command on a near-end ML-Series card when a fault is detected at the near-end. The Remote Fault Indication is 00 or no error, but the Local Fault Indication is 01 or link error.

Example 4-7 shows the partial output from this command on a far-end ML-Series card when a fault is detected at the near-end. The Remote Fault Indication is 01 or link error, and the Local Fault Indication is 00 or no error.

Note: If the far-end link partner resets within approximately two minutes of the near-end ML-Series card sending an RFI signalling link error, the link partner will not display the RFI link error indication when back up.

To enable and configure the triggers for CRC errors on POS , perform the following procedure, beginning in global configuration mode:

Step

Command

Purpose

1

Router(config)#int pos0

Router(config-if)#trigger crc-error

threshold <threshold_value>

Sets the CRC threshold value. If the percentage of CRC errored frames received on this interface is greater than this value, we consider this interface as seeing excessive CRC. The valid values are 2, 3 and 4 indicating thresholds of 10e-2 (1%), 10e-3(0.1%) and 10e-4(.01%). The default value is 3.

2

Router(config-if)#no trigger crc-error threshold <threshold_value>

Sets the threshold value back to the default value 3.

3

Router(config)#int pos0

Router(config-if)#trigger crc-error delay <soak_time_in_minutes>

Sets the number of consecutive minutes for which excessive CRC errors should be seen to raise an excessive CRC indication. The valid values are from 3 minutes to 10 minutes. Default is 10minutes.

4

Router(config-if)#no trigger crc-error delay <soak_time_in_minutes>

Sets the soak value back to the default of 10 minutes.

5

Router(config)#int pos0

Router(config-if)#trigger crc-error action

Enable trigger action. This configuration will bring the interface down on seeing CRC errors greater than configured <threshold value> for soak time period.

6

Router(config-if)#no trigger crc-error action

Disables trigger action.

Monitoring Operations on the Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet Interfaces

To verify the settings after you have configured the interfaces, enter the show interface command. For additional information about monitoring the operations on POS interfaces, see the Configuring POS chapter.

Example 4-8 shows the output from the show interface command, which displays the status of the interface including port speed and duplex operation.

Enter the show run interface [type number] command to display information about the configuration of the Fast Ethernet interface. The command is useful when there are multiple interfaces and you want to look at the configuration of a specific interface.

Example 4-10 shows output from the show run interface [type number] command, which includes information about the IP address or lack of IP address and the state of the interface.